WBC injury sidelines Dodgers' Hanley Ramirez 8 weeks

Dominican Republic's Hanley Ramirez celebrates after hitting a solo home run in the 5th inning of the World Baseball Classic first round game against Venezuela in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Thursday, March 7, 2013. The Dominican Republic won 9-3. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton) Photo Credit: AP Photo Andres Leighton

TUCSON, Ariz. - Dodgers shortstop Hanley Ramirez is scheduled to undergo surgery Friday on his right thumb and is expected to be sidelined for eight weeks, leaving Los Angeles to look for alternatives at shortstop until he's ready to play.

An MRI indicated that Ramirez has a torn ligament in his thumb, the team said Thursday. Dr. Steve Shin, a sports-medicine hand specialist, is scheduled to perform the surgery in Los Angeles.

"Not as of now," Colletti said. "If it was all year long, we'd think about it differently. We've got some depth."

Dee Gordon and Luis Cruz appear to be the leading candidates to be the opening day shortstop.

It looked as though Gordon was headed to Triple-A Albuquerque. Gordon, who appeared in 87 games last season, was the Dodgers' starting shortstop last season until he underwent surgery on July 6 for a similar injury to his right thumb.

"Right now, I have no idea what happens at shortstop," said manager Don Mattingly, who got the news before the Dodgers boarded a bus for Tucson and a game against the Chicago Cubs. "At this point, everything is hypothetical. I don't know if I'm comfortable with anything going on at shortstop right now."

At the start of spring training, Mattingly said Ramirez at shortstop was a key. He was at third base when the Dodgers obtained him on July 25 from the Miami Marlins. About three weeks after he joined the Dodgers, he moved to shortstop, his original position.

Despite the injury to Ramirez, Mattingly said the WBC "was great for the game."